Two teen detectives accompany their noble employers on a covert mission to a castle that is, it turns out, positively ridden with spies and secrets.
Continuing a storyline opened in The Fire Star (2022), as part of larger political maneuverings, Sir Garrick Sharp and his new wife, Lady Cassandra, have been sent to wind-swept Glawn Castle to sound out the loyalties of its overlord, Airl Riding—leaving squire Reeve and lady’s companion Maven to find out where the rest of the castle’s residents stand…and also to puzzle out a mystery involving a missing cook and a recipe that contains a coded message. As before, the young sleuths’ quick wits and complementary temperaments come into play—as does Maven’s membership in a secret society dedicated to educating women and helping them improve their lives—as the duo solve mysteries, effect rescues, and neutralize a mysterious ring of spies who may or may not be working for the realm’s wastrel king. Along with effectively using the constant titular gale to add atmosphere to the remote medieval setting and chucking in conflicts with a cunning mean girl as an ongoing subplot, Tait has a bit of fun by forcing Reeve to exchange clothes in one scene with a woman who rides off whooping at “the freedom afforded by a pair of breeches.” Every cast member in the ficto-British kingdom of Cartreff presents White.
More feudal finagling, with feminist strains running through a round of clever clue gathering. (Historical mystery. 10-13)Pub Date: Aug. 1, 2022
ISBN: 978-1-68464-438-4
Page Count: 304
Publisher: Kane Miller
Review Posted Online: May 24, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2022
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BOOK REVIEW
Chainani works an elaborate sea change akin to Gregory Maguire’s Wicked (1995), though he leaves the waters muddied.
Every four years, two children, one regarded as particularly nice and the other particularly nasty, are snatched from the village of Gavaldon by the shadowy School Master to attend the divided titular school. Those who survive to graduate become major or minor characters in fairy tales. When it happens to sweet, Disney princess–like Sophie and her friend Agatha, plain of features, sour of disposition and low of self-esteem, they are both horrified to discover that they’ve been dropped not where they expect but at Evil and at Good respectively. Gradually—too gradually, as the author strings out hundreds of pages of Hogwarts-style pranks, classroom mishaps and competitions both academic and romantic—it becomes clear that the placement wasn’t a mistake at all. Growing into their true natures amid revelations and marked physical changes, the two spark escalating rivalry between the wings of the school. This leads up to a vicious climactic fight that sees Good and Evil repeatedly switching sides. At this point, readers are likely to feel suddenly left behind, as, thanks to summary deus ex machina resolutions, everything turns out swell(ish).
Rich and strange (and kitted out with an eye-catching cover), but stronger in the set pieces than the internal logic. (Fantasy. 11-13)Pub Date: May 14, 2013
ISBN: 978-0-06-210489-2
Page Count: 496
Publisher: Harper/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: Feb. 12, 2013
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2013
Categories: CHILDREN'S SCIENCE FICTION & FANTASY | CHILDREN'S SOCIAL THEMES
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BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK TO SCREEN
In this entertaining novel centering Black tweens by noted musician and filmmaker Questlove and bestselling author Cosby, the gift of a supersmart phone is a godsend…until it’s very much not.
Philadelphia seventh grader Rahim Reynolds wants to be a rapper like Four the Hard Way, his favorite ’90s group, but if he’s not getting bullied at school, his history professor father’s strict anti-tech, all-books policies make things hard at home. Bestie and home-schooled neighbor Kasia Collins, in contrast, lives in a tech-filled wonderland and is the genius behind most of her home’s innovations. A space-time traveling phone that uses secret government satellites is just the latest invention she tests on her occasional guinea pig, Rahim. When he accidentally dials himself into 1997, Kasia never doubts her ability to get him back, but time is very literally working against them as Rahim disregards her warnings and interferes with almost everything. He quickly befriends his preteen father, sneaks into a Four the Hard Way concert, changes familial and global history, and causes a wormhole that wreaks havoc. Kasia, meanwhile, must deal with government agents and two sets of worried parents while figuring out how to get Rahim home. A semisuccessful return to the present quickly reminds Rahim of how good he had it before. The conclusion of this charming collaboration sets the stage for larger stakes in future adventures. Art not seen.
Time-travel hijinks and ’90s rap references abound in a fun and funny series starter. (Science fiction. 10-13)Pub Date: April 18, 2023
ISBN: 9780593354063
Page Count: 256
Publisher: Putnam
Review Posted Online: Jan. 11, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2023
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